Read Proverbs 30:5, Psalm 18:30. Isaiah 38:1-7
Many people have said to me that they don’t have to believe anything in the Bible except the bits about Jesus. The common way of putting it is that it’s not a salvation issue and doesn’t need to be worried about. Others want to sound more spiritual and suggest that we should major on the majors and not on the minors! But believing or not believing the Bible is pretty major when you really think about it!
Of course there are many bits in the Bible that aren’t directly related to salvation, no one disputes that! But when we start saying that I believe this part of the Bible and not that part we are indirectly disparaging the character of God. If, for example, I refuse to believe that the sun actually went backwards in Hezekiah’s day then I am tacitly saying that God’s Word can’t be trusted. I am saying that God tells me one thing when He actually does another. That amounts to calling God untrustworthy. That very quickly becomes a salvation issue, does it not?
Christians throughout the centuries have believed that the Bible is infallible - which means that all Scripture (from Genesis 1:1 to Revelation 22:21 is true and worthy of our trust. Obviously the verses must be read in the context of the book, the section and in context of the entire Bible. It does not follow that every interpretation is infallible. It’s possible to have two contradicting interpretations. Both cannot be infallible.
We also believe that the Bible is inerrant which is a fancy way of saying that the Bible is without error. Inerrancy and infallibility of the Scriptures flow out of the truth of inspiration and from the character of God. If God cannot lie (Heb 6:18) and if God is perfectly holy and true we can believe that every word He speaks is right and true. We simply cannot believe that God would tell us something divergent from the truth. Added to this, if God superintended the Word of God coming to us in its pure and original form then we can trust that the Word of God is both inerrant and infallible.
The kind of “god” that says one thing when it is actually something else is not the kind of “god” I want to worship. I worship the God who speaks the truth in love and I unashamedly believe every Word He’s given me in the Scriptures. Do you?
Prayer: Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
ª Pray that the Word would be faithfully preached tomorrow and faithfully taught to the Children as well. Ask the Lord to bring conviction, repentance, submission and change as needed in each person. Pray that the Word would be powerful and active among us tomorrow.
ª Pray that God would bless the work of Creation Ministries and Creation Research as they seek to bring people, many of whom are believers already, to believe in the Bible and to take its early chapters as serious, genuine history. Pray that many would come to accept the Bible as the inerrant and infallible Word of God.
Witness Moment – Do you believe every word of Bible is inspired or breathed out by God? If no, the Bible will be one among many books you enjoy. You won’t share it with others. But if you do believe it to be expired by God, you will speak boldly and openly about Bible. If the word of God is living in your heart, it will flow out of your mouth at every opportunity.
1. Can you be a Christian and not believe in the inspiration of Scripture? Please explain.
2. What can I do if I find some part of Scripture hard, or well nigh impossible, to believe?
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